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W. F. DURPEE 8a T. EGLESTON. APPAMTUS` POR CASTING GOPPBR.

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' y lAPPARATUS FOR CASTING COPPER. V v NO- 287.646. Patented 001;. so, 1883.v

Mln 0,9593; l fdl/@07152 A v MMM OZ W '6' /5' W im/4Q' UNI-TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM E. DUREEE, or BRIDCEPORT, CONNECTICUT, AND THOMAS ECLEsToN, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

APPARATUS FO R l CASTI NG CO PPE R.

SPECIFICA'l-ION forming part of Letters Patent No., 287,646, dated October VBVO, 1883.

citizens of the United States, have jointly invented new and usefullApparatusland Ma.

chinery for Casting Copper and other Metals, of which the following isa specification.

Our invention relates to a reverberatory furnace for use incasting copper, and it consists in the construction and arrangement of parts, as hereinafter, more fully described.

Figure l is a front elevation of that part o our improved casting apparatus which is attached to the side of the reverberatory furnace in which the copper or other metal is refined or melted. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of Fig. l, (taken on line A B,) and-shows a vpart, F, of the reverberatory furnace, `having a sand bottom, b, iron' bottom plates, P, ,binders m', furnace-plates p, and that part of our improved casting apparatus Vwhich is attached to the furnace extending to the right of the outside of the same. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of that portion of our improved Acasting apparatus which regulates the flow of the metal from the receiving-chamber X, Fig. 2, to the ingot-molds m m m. Fig. 4 is a' crosssection of Fig. 3 on line EJ.

Similar letters refer to like parts in the several figures.

In order to render the construction and purposes of our invention' more clear, We'will de-` scribe it as applied to the casting of ingots of refined copper. The crude or pig copperis melted and undergoes the process of rening in the chamber F, Fig. 2, of a reverberatory furnace, and ordinarily the casting operation consists in bailing out the refined metal by means of wrought-iron ladles more or less hemispherical in shape, which are protected from the vcorrosive action of the fluid metal by a thin v wash of hre-clay. The fluid metal is carried lin the body Application filed January 13, 1883. (No (model.)

one end of the tank as it flows away at the other, thus' keeping its temperature and level practically uniform. The ingot-,molds aforesaid ar'e hung lin a hinged fra-me in such a manner that when the ingot is sufficiently solid to admit of it theycan be inverted, Vin which position the ingot-mold is nearly covered with water, thus suddenly ,cooling the `ingot, which then drops out of its mold into the water of the tank, from which it is taken by tongs and placed in a Wheelbarrow for rc: moval.

NCW, our improvement in casting, as distinguished from the ordinary method just described, is as follows: The copper is melted and rened in a furnace of practically the same internal construction as that used for the ordinary method; but instead of bailing the metal As soon as the copper is refined the tap-hole, A

Fig. 2, is opened and so much of the metal in the furnace as will is allowed to flow through the tap-hole into the receiving-chamber -X, where it nally comes to rest, with its surface free from slag, on a level with that of the metal of the furnace. This receivingchamber X is made of wroughtiron, and is rmly secured to the outside plates, Z, of the brackets S S. The iron-body of the receiving-chamber X is protected yfrom the action of the fluid metal by a layer of sand or loam uponits vbottom land by fire-clay or brick upon its sides; but its right-handinclined end (see Fig. 2) is closed by asliding plate, O, of

rlfhe inclined plate O aforesaid is held firmly moves with the inclined plate 0,) and to the Y 8O n body-of the furnace and supported by the short arms of the levers Z Z', having suitable counter-weights, XV XV, on their longer ends. (These weights, levers, and chains are placed on each side of the receiving-chamber X; but for the sake of clearness they are omitted on the right-hand side of the drawing, Fig'-, l.)

The contact-joint made by the plate O with the bottom and sides of the receiving-chamber X is made tight as regards any leak of fluid metal by dry sand filling the groove c, Fig. 2,which extends across the bottom and up each of the sides (following the inclination of the plate O) of the receiving-chamber X. The wroughtiron plate O is provided along its upper edge with three projecting tapering nozzles or spoutsm n, (see Figs. 3 and 4,) also of wroughtiron, secured to it by rivets. These nozzles are protected 011 their inside from the action of the fluid metal by a wash of clay in the same way as the plate to which they are attached, and their outer ends are planed, so that they lie in the same plane. It is through these nozzles that the fluid metal runs into the ingot-molds m, and for the purpose of regulating its ilow or stopping it altogether the outer extremity of each of the nozzles is pro vided with a valve, V, which has a plane su-r- .face opposed to the end of the nozzle and a hemispherical projection on its reverse side. This valve is looselysustained by aserew-bolt, w, in the cup-shaped lower extremity of the arms Q, (see Figs. 3 and 4,) said arms being mounted on and actuated by the shaft H (which is supported in bearings d d of the frame f through the medium ofthe springs y yy, which encircle the shaft H, and are fastened to it and to the upper side of the lever-sockets of the arms Q, which sockets carry hand-levers U U U, Figs. 3 and 4. These hand-levers enable us to give each of the arms Q a partial motion of rotation about but independent of the shaft H aforesaid, thus permitting any one of the valves V to be openedor closed independent of the others, (see Fig. 4, in which the valve V beyond t-he plane of section is shown open,) and at the same time allows all of the valves V to be actuated simultaneously by means of the hand-levers I I, secured to the right-hand end of the shaft H, Figs. 3 and 4, and also admits of any one or all of the valvesVyielding slightly to any obstruction that comes between the valve and the end of the nozzles. The plate O is loosely attached to its supporting and carrying frame f in such way that it is free to expand `in all directions (as its temi perat'ure rises) without constraint, and whenever its supporting and carrying frame j is moved up or down the plate Q accompanies the movement. The upward and downward movement of the carrying-frame f andits plate O is intended to regulate the rapidity of the flow of melted metal through the nozzles 'n a n when the valves V are opened. Thus it will readily be seen that if the nozzles n a u are so placed relative to the surface ofthe fluid metal .in the receivingchamberXthat they are filled be drawn from the furnace at such rate as isl desired. Y

The carrying-frame f has attached to it the racks j j by the bolts brb passing through their upper extremities, (see Figs. l and 2,) and their lower ends are coupled together and held in gear with the pinions 1)19 by means of the long cylindrical weight-bar w', which arrangement allows the carrying-frame f to have a certain freedom of movement relative to the racks jj, the better to allow the plate O to adapt itself to any slight variation of form of the end of the receivingchamber X, against which it bears and slides. The pinions 1)12" are attached tothe -shaft H, which is supported by and turns in the lower ends of the brackets b b, which are secured at their upper ends to the sides of the receiving-chamber X. By rotating the shaft H', the carrying-frame f, with the plate O, its nozzles n an, valves V, and levers U U U and I I are raised or lowered together, as desired.

The receiving-chamber X and the metal therein are protected from the action of the air by a removable hood or cap, h', made of wrought-iron lined with a layer of fire-clay or loam. This hood has a short chimney, c', on its top, and during the operation of casting the draft of the reverberatory furnace is so regulated and the amount of air supplied to it so adjusted that there will be within it what is known as a reducing or neutral77 atmosphere, which will have free access through an opening in the side of the furnace above the top-hole to the interior of the hood h', and thus prevent the oxidation of the metal in the furnace and receiving-chamber X, any outward pressure of the reducing atmosphere finding free vent through the short Chimney c aforesaid.

The hood h can be readily removed as occasion requires by a crane or other mechanism, lifting it by the handles L L', Fig. 1, attached to its sides for that purpose.

As soon as the rened'metal has (after the opening ofthe tap-hole, as before described) filled the receiving-chamber X, Fig. 2, the arm of the hydraulic crane is turned by an attendant, by means of a suitable hand-lever, so as to bring the ingot-molds, that are on the top of suitable supporting-wheels, under the nozzles IOO IIO

n a a of the plate O, and the attendant then face of the metal in the receiving-chamber by means of power acting through the pinions p and racks j, before described, all of which adjustmentsbeing made, asecond attendant opens the three valves V V V, Figs. 3 and 4, by means of the levers II, which act upon them through the shaft H and springsy y, 85e., and the metal in the receiving-chamber will at once commence to flow through the nozzles n a n into the ingot molds 'm m m beneath them, and when these molds are filled the second attendant will close the valves V V lV by means of the levers I I aforesaid; but in case any of the molds m m m beneath the nozzles n n u have not received the proper amount of metal, when the remaining molds areiilled,the attendant closes the valve orvvalves,-which stops the flow of metal to the filled mold-or molds, and holds the other valve or valves open (by means of the levers U U U, the elasticity of thesprings 'y y, &c., permitting of the movement ofthe valves inl the way described) until all the molds m m m in the group below the nozzles n n n have received the proper supply of metal. This group of molds is then removed or moved along by appropriate mea-ns, and the contents thereof deposited in asuitable receptacle, another group of molds being substituted and iilled, as before, and so on until all the metal in the furnace has been cast into ingots. The operations just described are repeated as the groups of molds are filled, and as they are moved along and caused to descend the supporting-plates on which they rest are maintained in a horizontal position by appropriate mechanism, thus giving the iluid metal time to solidify on its outside before the molds containing it are immersed in a cooling-tank, which completesfthe solidiiication of the ingots.

It will be evident to any 011e acquainted with the ordinary method of casting ingots of reiined copper that by our improvements we effeet a large saving of time and manual labor, and that owing to the rapidity of the operation, as compared with ordinary practice, the copper will be of better quality.

It will be understood that we do not herein claim the cooling-tank or the mold-carrying 2. The uuid-metai-ught jiut between the f sliding-plate O and inclined end of the receiving-chamber X, consisting of dry sand contained in a groove extending along the bottom and up the side of said receiving-chamber, and following the inclination of said plate, substantially as described. Y 3. The sliding plate O, provided with nozzles n n, and supported loosely in a carryingframe, f, whereby it is enabled 'to expand or contract as its temperature varies without binding yor in any way interfering with its movements when scribed. t 4. The combination, vwith theV K receivingchamber X and frame f f, of the sliding plate O, held against the inclined end and sandgroove of said receiving-chamber by the gravity of the weights W W, acting through the levers Z Z and chains C C, substantially as described.

V5. The combination, with the plate O, havving nozzles u n, of the valves V V, shaft H, arms Q Q, springs y y, and levers IIandU U,

substantially as described. A

6. The racks j j, secured at theirupper ends to the carryingframe f f by pins, and provided with a coupling at their lower ends, the two racks being acted upon by the pinions p p on the shaft H', all combined and operating substantially as described. f

y w. F. Drinnen. THOMAS EGLESTON.

Witnesses: i

C. N. WORTHEN., A. W. HURD.

in use, substantially as de- 

